ROYAL EASTER SHOW- AUCKLAND

Well, I went to my last show of the season on Friday, The Royal Easter Show in Auckland, and had a fabulous time. I was very impressed with the grounds at the ASB Showgrounds. They were probably the most professionally maintained that I have seen in my first short show season in New Zealand. It's always nice to not have to battle knee high grass when you're applying your black hoof gloss!

My yearling filly, 'Graemar Replique', was impeccably well behaved, as she has been at every one of her three outings this year. She trotted up faultlessly, stood like a statue in the line up and loaded/unloaded well. We ended up placing second in the Yearling Sporthorse class behind a very upstanding and charismatic young colt. So, not as great a result as we achieved at Kumeu A&P but still something to be proud of. Despite being heart-breakingly pretty, she still looks quite immature compared to some of the others that are out at the moment so I'm looking forward to seeing how she looks with another winter/spring behind her.

Despite fairly low entries, the standards were very high at this year's Royal Easter. A number of well known showies did very well, including Anne Hjorth who scooped Champion Saddle Hunter on the stunning 'Savile Row' and Champion Hack/Supreme Horse on 'Acquisition.' What an amazing result!

The only teeny tiny downside of the day was still seeing a couple of riders, both children and adults, abusing draw reins, double bridles and side reins (and sometimes a combo of these!) when working in their horses. I especially dislike seeing horses being yanked down in front while being booted in the ribs, leaving it with absolutely nowhere to go. Also, if you need to turn your black horse white in order for it to be rideable in a show class, you really need to reevaluate your training techniques and/or whether said horse is suitable for the show ring, and whether a different discipline would be better...

Thankfully, I also saw a large number of beautiful riders who were actually having a conversation with their mounts rather than screaming at it with a megaphone. Always a pleasure to see :)

I hope everyone had a great show season. Roll on the next one.

GRAEMAR REPLIQUE'S FIRST SEASON

Well, I have been neglecting the Horse Tales blog these past few months. Partly because I went back to the UK for five weeks over Christmas and also because I've had a few other exciting things going on. However, I am now back in avengence and looking forward to posting regularly!

As far as my own personal showing activities go, I am very excited to have been showing yearling Park Hack filly 'Graemar Replique' (stable name Katie) for the first time this season. She has taken everything in her stride and I'm very proud of her. At her first show, Helensville A&P, we took things slowly and cautiously, ending up with a third place in the Junior Arab Derivative Filly class, Three Years and Under. My main objective was to get her used to the sights and smells of the showground and she excelled herself! A few neighs but that was all. At our next show, Kumeu A&P, we really went for it as she had proved at the previous show that she was perfectly laid back about the whole showing affair. We were rewarded with two firsts, in the Sporthorse Yearling class and the Junior Sporthorse Suitable for Show Hacking! I'm so pleased with this little horse and really looking forward to taking her out again.

NO FOOT, NO SHOW HORSE

The weather in Auckland has been absolutely abysmal recently- rain, rain and yet more rain! I think this is probably part of the reason my poor yearing filly has developed a yucky little abscess. I haven't had to deal with one in years and the only ones that I have had any experience with were caused by very obvious stone bruises. I was in an absolute panic when I saw her limping around the field- all sorts of nightmare situations flashed across my mind. Thankfully, the vet took one look at her trotting up and said abscess, which was a huge relief. Although, I have to say, poulticing a yearling with a sore foot is one of the trickier things I've had to do!

It got me to thinking about feet though- and how important they are. They really should be one of the first things that a show judge looks at, as without a well put together foot, a horse or pony is probably not going to keep going for as long and in some cases won't be able to perform its job to the best of its ability (think of the Hunters which are supposed to be capable of travelling over undulating terrain all day long) Do you think judges pay enough attention to the feet? I know that those judging the native pony classes (Welsh, Fell Ponies, Connies etc) place great importance on good, strong hooves but it should be just as important a consideration in show pony and show horse classes...

Thinking about hooves also got me musing on the strange things that some people do to enhance movement. Some more humane than others!

Show hacks and ponies: Use of lightweight aluminum plates. Often, producers will ride their animals in normal shoes day-to-day and then switch to the plates the day before the show. Apparently, the horses feel the difference in weight and display a more exaggerated movement. A word from someone in the know: these shoes cost a blimmin fortune and literally melt off the feet if you even dare look at a road!

Some people take the shoes off the day before a show, for the same reason as above

Welsh Cobs: There has been much controversy regarding the Welshies over the years, as some people have been caught employing questionable techniques to achieve 'correct' movement. This includes fitting weighted shoes to encourage a snapping up of the knee- sometimes on ponies as young as yearlings! This is actually a pointless exercise as it ultimately ruins their action. They end up practically trotting on the spot, throwing their legs all over the place and not moving freely forwards as they should.

Saddle Seat Horses: High action is prized in the Saddle Seat Horse. Therefore, many horses shown in Saddle Seat are shod with pads and special shoes. The shoes are often held in place with a metal band, as well as cinches, because of their weight. Longer toes and heavier shoes encourage a Saddle Seat Horse to lift its feet and knees higher, or reach them out farther , with more snap and flash. Toe length and shoe weight is an often controversial subject among competitors.

The most controversial practice used on some Saddle Seat Horses, primarily the Tennessee Walking Horse is soring: the placing of a caustic ointment on the coronary band and pastern of the horse, to cause pain so that the horse picks up its feet as quickly as they touch the ground

Anyone know of any other breeds/types where people really put themselves out and use various gadgets to enhance the animal's movement?